Andrew Dominik’s “Blonde”
Blonde (2022)
Horror of the highest calibre that has more to do with “Revulsion”, “Hour of the Wolf” and “Mulholland Drive” than any true attempt to create a biopic of Marilyn Monroe; a mesmerising though arduous journey worth taking
Reviewing this off the back of “Elvis” seemed a good idea, to create a duo of biopics except that “Blonde” isn’t a biopic. Based on Joyce Carol Oates’ Pulitzer nominated finalist which presents a fictionalised take on the life of Marilyn Monroe, Andrew Dominik(“Chopper”, “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”) has written a screenplay that has more in common with Polanski’s “Revulsion”, Berman’s “Hour of the Wolf” and Lynch’s “Mulholland Drive” than any actual cinematic biopic. Mark Kermode had mentioned in his review that this was a horror but I thought that likely to be hyperbole but it’s wholly accurate.
At moments we see through Marilyn’s eyes and the world is subtly distorted to horrific effect. Paired with the parade of tribulations, this creates a mounting unease and intensity. The original cut of the film needed to be trimmed to avoid the American’s NC-17 rating (a box office death knell). It isn’t an easy film to watch and the trailer sells the film quite badly cherry picking the pleasant while eschewing the horror element. Can you imagine Chopper being sold as a happy biopic?
Just in the first 10 minutes, it dives straight into some of the most hellish and strangely beautiful scenes with Chayse Irvin’s cinematography grabbing us by the throat and never letting go until the credits. Music from Nick Cave and Warren Ellis flits from eerie to haunting to disconcerting; a beautiful match with what’s happening on screen.
Ana de Armas puts in a terrific performance as Marilyn and Norma Jean expressing a conflict between these two sides who inhabit the same body convincingly.
As with all my reviews, I’m always conscientious not to give away too much so I’ll stop there. If the above sounds like your cup of tea, this film will likely work for you. Whatever you do, don’t go in expecting to see a biopic of Marilyn Monroe and you should probably give the trailer a miss too; the teaser below is better.
